Trouble in Paradise
by purefreckles
Summary: When Clara gets a little snoopy she and the Doctor are brought over to Pete's World. She will discover a part of the Doctor's past that he avoids talking about at all costs. Tentoo/Rose.
1. Prologue

It was late one night when the Doctor and Rose looked for parts. They hadn't meant to come in so late, but their dinner with Martha and her fiancé James ran a bit longer than expected. Not a bad longer, actually a very good longer. Truly they should have gone home after, as the Doctor had become a bit tipsy. It was a good thing Rose drank lightly, otherwise none of them would have made it home.

Now the two of them were in the basement of Torchwood Four, searching for possibly helpful things for the growth of the TARDIS coral. Well, at least Rose was. The Doctor was passed out in the corner, snoring loudly. Bless his heart, his strangely singular heart. He never could hold his liquor.

Earlier he had been rambling on about a cellular replication manipulator or something of the like, and Rose was trying her best to make a match. There were so many pieces of alien junk in here, much of which they hadn't had before the rift opened for the first time. So much junk had just appeared around Cardiff that Torchwood stepped in to make sure it didn't get in the wrong hands. Or just hands that didn't know how to work it and risked the possibility of it blowing up in their face.

Rose turned the corner, starting to make her way down another endless and unsorted aisle. She pushed around a cart, almost like she was grocery shopping. She picked up a piece of a particle accelerator. Maybe it would help, she really didn't know. It was like trying to cook without a recipe or previous knowledge.

A small box caught her eye. On it was bizarre writing, carved into the alien surface. The box looked like a metal and wood combined into one material. In a funny way it seemed a bit menacing. She knew she shouldn't bother with it, but she was far too curious. That had always been her trouble. Too nosy for her own good, her mother always said. Well her mother wasn't here, so Rose didn't care. She crouched down in front of it and ran her fingers over the dusty surface.

The markings glowed lightly, warming at her touch. She thumbed the lock, searching through her hair for a bobby pin with the other hand. She really ought to have her own sonic screwdriver, but then she supposed it wouldn't be as special. Finally, after searching through her bag, she found a hair pin. She pushed it into the lock slowly, head tilted as she listened for the clicks. Funny how there are so many species of aliens and they all tend to use the same sort of locks. How unoriginal, she thought and pulled the lock off. She lifted the lid with both hands and peered inside.

Little golden specks glowed, and energy of some sort probably. But then it began to envelop her. She was wide-eyed as the warmth penetrated her skin, sinking to her core.

"Doctor…" She began, but couldn't finish. It was glorious, and she felt tired at last. And so she sank to the floor, already unconscious of her numb arms catching her and laying her gently down. The box's lid flipped down and closed tight, as it's contents were now all gone.

~1 year later~

The ground was surprisingly warm under Roses feet as she stepped out of the TARDIS into the embrace of the sun. Sand tickled her feet as she danced down to the water, blonde hair being blown around in the salty breeze. She really hadn't had good experiences at beaches, but this would be a first, she decided. The calm clear waters called to her with the gentle slap of waves against the shore. And so she splashed into the endless blue. She dunked her head, letting her hair cover her face as she came up. She flipped back her hair from her eyes.

"Not much of a Bond babe, am I-" but her voice broke off when she saw the Doctor coming toward her. His swim trunks were the color of the TARDIS and showed off his lean muscular legs. His torso was toned ever so slightly, looking very slim and attractive. He had a patch of dark hair across his chest and down his stomach. Rose was speechless, something she had found happened so very often with this Doctor.

The Doctor looked down at himself, confused.

"What? Have I got sunblock not rubbed in?" He tried to look down at his nose, going cross-eyed in the process. Rose smiled, she could never express how much she loved this man. This one. She loved the other, but now she loved this one so much more. He glanced up to see her smiling, then broke out into one of his great big grins. Her mouth opened just slightly as her tongue poked out between her teeth. He sauntered across the red sand to the water. "So, what'dya think? Okay for a beach?"

"'S perfect." She flopped down into the shallow waters.

"Did you know that this planet is half ocean half desert, perfectly divided across the meridian. And the sun hits perfectly from the south pole that the southern half is in perpetual day and the northern half is always dark." He dropped down next to her.

"So, is there anyone around? Or is it just red rocks and red sand?"

"Well, there is a small tribe of purple people who live at the core. And actually this isn't sand, it's a highly compacted form of this water, more similar to snow than-oh. Oh." Rose had put a finger to his lips then lightly kissed him. He moved into it, running a hand through her hair and pulling her back in. She kissed him passionately, as they had many times before. But this was slightly different, this was the kiss of a victor. She had won, they had won. And she was desperate to show him that. It was fiery and confident and sent shivers down his spine. They had the TARDIS, they had the universe to explore, and they had each other.

It had been two years since they had been stranded here. For Rose the second time. Really, it seemed like an eternity already. So much had happened just in two short years, they saved the world, grew the TARDIS, and in the meantime bought a house. Of course now they spent more time on the TARDIS, but it was nice having a place to return to that wasn't occupied by someone else. More notably, a home that wasn't sentient.

They pulled apart slowly, letting the fire linger on their lips. She grinned, running her hand across his jaw as she stood.

"I'm starved." Then she collapsed into the water. The Doctor's eyes went wide as his grin dissolved. He rushed over to her, water flying behind him.

"Rose! Rose, please!" He lifted her from the shallows and ran to the TARDIS, "Stay with me. Please," He begged. He gently set her on the torn leather bench that occupied a small portion of the railing. Golden energy escaped Rose's lips, joining with the light of the column. It went completely unnoticed by the distraught Doctor.

He frantically circled the console, pulling and pressing and switching and turning. For once he didn't know what to do or where to go. But now the TARDIS did.


	2. Chapter 1

_Wow, it__'__s hot, _ thought the Doctor as he tugged on his bow-tie. The scarlet dunes in front of him were definitely not what he was expecting.

"So this is the musical planet you were telling me about? Seems a bit, not musical if you ask me." Clara stepped out to join the Doctor on the sand.

"Yes well," He looked up to the sky," At least I got the right galaxy this time."

"Looks like someone should have paid more attention in his TARDIS ed class." But the Doctor wasn't listening. He was muttering to himself.

"No, no, no. I knew the parking was off again." He sulked into the TARDIS, waving his hands wildly as he continued, "Always breaking, always landing wrong, can't even transport us 53 billion miles without a mess up." As if in response a screw nearby came loose and hit him in the head. "Ow."

"So, where are we off to? Skipping the musical planet? What about the Shadow Gardens of Loxia?" Clara walked back into the TARDIS, a slight skip in her step, then added with a hint of annoyance, "Or more repairs?"

She already knew the answer. The TARDIS was in motion, but the Doctor had hopped down under the console.

Clara sat down on the edge of the upper level and began to swing her feet. She began to ask him about the planet they had just left, but he didn't respond, too busy rewiring something.

Clara looked about. There wasn't really much to do while waiting on the TARDIS. She really didn't like exploring it because of previous experiences, so really her only knowledge of the TARDIS was the console room, her bedroom, the loo, and the cramped little kitchen that looked as if it belonged in a cheap flat. She never understood that kitchen, the Doctor could have any kitchen and he chose that horrid little one. A single person could barely fit in there, let alone two who had completely different tastes.

Thinking about the kitchen made her hungry. She could really go for a turkey leg. Unfortunately, the TARDIS was rubbish at cooking turkey.

She stood. Even if she couldn't have turkey there was bound to be something else edible in that kitchen. But first she decided to make a stop at her room, she had sand in her shoes. Slippers would be perfect, especially since she didn't get to wear them much as they were always out and about. She opened the door to her room. It was simple, with red walls and a double bed covered with a black and white tartan duvet. Her slippers sat at the foot of the bed, as if the TARDIS knew she wanted them. She smiled and thanked the TARDIS in her mind.

She pulled on the fluffy white slippers, wiggling her toes around the soft inside. She hadn't worn them in months and didn't realize how much she had missed them. Once outside her room she turned to go to the kitchen, but stopped and looked back. The hall was long and narrow, and she hadn't bothered to go down it before, never having much time or interest. But now all of the doors looked interesting, and she felt a bit snoopy.

Clara already knew that the door across from hers was the bathroom, but the door next to it seemed interesting. She tugged on the handle. Locked. She looked up, and near the top of the door was a heart with two names, Amy and Rory. Interesting.

The next door too, was locked. A sign hung on it with childrens letters, simply stating 'Amy's Room' in crayon.

She tried the next few doors to no avail. Apparently someone didn't want her to know who Wilf, Donna, Jack, or Martha were.

The next door even looked different from the rest. It was painted bright green, but the paint was peeling. There was no name card or anything on the door to tell who it was. Clara tried the handle and it wouldn't budge. Not even jiggle a little. It was completely sealed shut. She sighed and moved down the hall, not even bothering with handles anymore, just wondering who these people were. The final door in the hallway was labeled Susan. The plaque on the door was slightly faded, as if it had been there a long time. She sighed. This hallway wasn't quite as interesting as it had seemed. Just lots of names and locked doors.

Only that one held her interest. No name and completely sealed.

_Why?_ Clara wondered, making her way down the stairs into the console room. Maybe she'd ask him later, when he's not messing around under the console anymore. She realized she wasn't even hungry anymore as she sat down on the railing. Not hungry for food at least. Hungry for information? Always.

The Doctor popped up from under the console.

"Oh, there you are! I like the shoes! Hear that style's big on Tholonia! Maybe not quite, but they are obsessed with rabbits and the like. Big import of theirs-"

"Doctor." Clara cleared her throat and glanced at the console.

"Oh, yes, right. Things should be working right, but really we should test it out. What about Fllangak? A little hard to pronounce but a very nice planet. The Valleys of Yestal are nice this time of year. Or maybe even Tholonia!-" Clara cut him off again.

"Can I ask you about something?" The Doctor looked around, then answered puzzledly.

"Yes.. ask away…" He could tell something was off.

"The hallway my room is in. There are a ton of locked doors with names on them," The Doctor opened his mouth to answer, but she continued, "There's a bright green one, the paint's a bit old too. All of the doors have names but that one. Why?"

The Doctor looked as if he didn't want to answer, so Clara brought up the other part of it.

"It was also sealed shut. All of the other ones seemed locked, like normal, but this one was sealed completely."

The Doctor muttered to himself.

"Why are they all in the same hallway? Especially this close to the console room… I'll need to fix that…"

"Doctor, answer me."

He sighed.

"Those rooms are the rooms of my former companions," At her look of horror he continued quickly, "Most of them left, went on with their lives."

"Are… are there any dead ones?.. here?" It was the Doctors turn to look horrified.

"No! That's revolting!" Disgusted with the thought he pushed it to the back of his mind.

"Then what about the d-"

"Oh, look at the time! It's time for bed! Clara you must be exhausted! I know I am!" And he rushed off, the lights dimming in the console room.

But there, hanging on the railing, was his jacket. She looked at it and a small grin began to grow on her face.


	3. Chapter 2

It wasn't right nicking his sonic screwdriver, Clara knew, but he was hiding something, and she had to know just what. She was tired of his secrets, his lies, well, it was more of avoiding the truth.

Now that she was in the hallway the doors were gone, but the hall was just as long. At the end of it she could see a door in the dim light and knew just what door it was. The Doctor couldn't blame her for leaving his jacket around, screwdriver just waiting to be taken, and she decided she should seize the opportunity more often.

She reached the end of the hallway, now a little uncomfortable with what she was doing, but Clara wasn't one to go back on her decisions. She pressed the button down on the sonic, trying to mimic everything he did.

At first it didn't seem as if it was going to open, but then with a pop the door swung inwards.

It was a bedroom. A girls bedroom. A teenage girls bedroom. A light pink covered the walls and an orange shag carpet covered the ground. A twin sized daybed was pushed against the wall, a neon pink cover accented by green and orange pillows. The nightstand was white and covered with odds and ends of all sorts. Clothes were strewn about the floor, almost as if this person hadn't planned on going. And when Clara thought going, really she thought…you know.

She stepped inside, wary of being trapped. She looked up at the ceiling fan, beads hanging down from it. She couldn't believe he hadn't wanted her to see this. It really didn't seem worth the effort of completely sealing it up.

"It wasn't for you." She jumped, not having realized she said it aloud. Clara turned around to face the source of the voice.

The Doctors eyes looked sad and weary, and she could see the grief in his expression.

"Did she…" Clara didn't finish, but she didn't have to.

"No. But she's gone anyway." It was painful to see the Doctor like this. Clara wanted to hug him, but at that moment she could tell that no amount of hugs, or anything for that matter, could stop his aching. She reached out for his arm, but suddenly the TARDIS lurched, throwing them across the room.

They fell onto the bed, the Doctor sprawled on top of Clara. As the TARDIS stabilized he pulled himself off of her, almost embarrassed looking. Clara stood there as the Doctor nearly ran out of room, headed for the console area. She stared after the Doctor. He still hadn't told Clara who's room this was. Time to use her snooping abilities.

She rummaged through the drawer of the nightstand. There was some alien looking clutter and a couple of elastics, but nothing to identify the girl.

A closet. She had seen it when she first came in. It was white and had folding doors like shutters. Clara pulled them open and inside were clothes. By looking at them she could assume they were from the 2004-2007 range. And these were definitely clothes for a girl in her late teens, early twenties.

A thought came to Clara.

_ This girl was-is the same age as me, give or take a few years._

She looked at the top shelf. Among the shoes and other things there was a box. A plain cardboard box. Clara wasn't sure she had ever seen cardboard on the TARDIS prior to this moment. She was drawn to it. She had taken it down and placed it on the bed before she even realized what she had done. Clara knew it was a bad idea to snoop this much, but she was so close, she knew it. So she opened the lid. There were photos thrown in with other things, namely a white notebook, a mobile, and a… bra. A lacy pink bra.

Maybe she should just close the box and leave, but the blonde girl in the pictures looked so happy and the man she was with looked happy too. Who were these people?

Most of the photos were of her with a man in a long brown coat with crazy hair and a goofy grin. They seemed like a cute couple.

Clara leafed through the photos, but could not find any of this girl and the Doctor. Strange. And none of these photos were labeled. What if this room was a creepy shrine to this girl? No wonder the Doctor would want to keep everyone out. She flipped through the photos at the bottom of the box.

A single photo sat alone at the bottom, slightly separate from the others. The same girl stood with one arm wrapped around a different man, one with short black hair and a big nose and especially large ears. And they stood outside the TARDIS.

And then it came to her- he must be the Doctor in one of his previous regenerations. The man in the leather and the man with the wild hair.

But they looked so happy. Even their eyes shone with joy, and the Doctor, her Doctor, even when he smiled his eyes were sad. What had happened?

She stroked the edge of the photo, troubled. Who are you, and what happened to him? She flipped the photo, still hoping for a caption and was rewarded.

_'__Rose and the Doctor__' _ was written in slightly messy handwriting, a quickly drawn heart around it. Clara had the feeling this wasn't written by Rose or the Doctor.

"Rose," She stated aloud, it was a nice name, "Rose and the Doctor." The picture gave off a glimmer as some golden light seemed to come out of it.

The light traveled down the corridor, and Clara followed, tentatively. It came to the console room, where the Doctor was examining a screen. He looked exhausted. And sad. Clara moved forward silently, thankful for the soft soles of her slippers. She stopped as the golden light swirled around the console, joining with the regular blue luminance. The Doctor didn't even seem to notice he was so out of it.

As the light joined it became brighter and the TARDIS began to move. Clara gripped the railing, not sure what was happening and beginning to regret her snooping. The Doctor looked up in surprise as he was thrown to the floor. He quickly scrambled back to the console, pulling levers and flipping switches.

"Stop! No, stop it!" He demanded. He then stared into the light that had overtaken the console.

"No," He whispered, barely audible, "No, it can't be."

The TARDIS jerked wildly and the Doctor continued to throw his hands across the console, pulling and pressing and switching and turning.

The TARDIS stopped as suddenly as it started, the glow dissipating, almost as if it had never been there. The Doctor slowly looked up at Clara.

"Oops?" She said meekly. He gradually removed his gaze from hers and turned towards the door. He stared at it for a moment as it was going to bite him, then his resolve returned and he decided it was worth a look.

He proceeded to the door, on alert. Clara followed at a distance.

He gingerly opened the door, and there was London, tall buildings and blue skies full of zeppelins.


	4. Chapter 3

Zeppelins. _No, this can__'__t be right, _the Doctor thought. _There must be some zeppelin festival going on. We can__'__t- I can__'__t be here. No one new can be here. Except babies, but they don__'__t count._

"Doctor? Why are we in London? More notably, why are we at a babies formula factory?" Her mention of babies came at the exact same moment that he thought about them.

"What? What about babies?"

"We're at a babies formula factory." Clara gestured to the large building.

"This isn't a babies formula factory," He sniffed the air. Nothing like babies formula.

"The sign says it is."

"Yes, well signs are deceiving. If you have a decent enough sign you can fool almost anyone."

"Then why would it have a babies formula sign if it's not? Why fool anyone?"

"Hmm, yes good question, maybe we should-" He cut off suddenly, remembering the zeppelins, "No, we have to go." He grabbed Clara's hand and dragged her back into the TARDIS.

It was dark.

"Doctor? What's going on?" Clara peered through the pitch black, trying to place the Doctor, as he had begun to wander around frantically, cursing, sort of.

"Turn on you… you… soggy bread! This isn't supposed to happen! Not again!"

There was a loud clatter. A hand grabbed Clara's arm and she jumped. She was dragged out of the TARDIS.

"Apples." He spat, using the word much like one would use 'damn'.

"Soggy bread? Apples?"

"Have you never had soggy bread? It's as if they're trying to tempt me with the thought of porridge but not quite. It's disgusting."

"Apples?" She stated again, "Really."

"Just taste one and you'll understand." He began pacing. They really needed to leave. Right now. Right this second. But they couldn't. He just wanted to punch the Daleks. Even if it did hurt.

"Doctor, you're pacing. It's worrying me."

_You have more than that to be worried about, _ he thought, and continued pacing. All he could think of was last time he was here. And zeppelins. But mostly last time he was here. All the times he was here. In Pete's world. He hated Pete's world.

Suddenly two hands gripped his upper arms. Clara was staring at him.

"Stop. I get the feeling we're a bit stuck. But you've done stuck before, haven't you? So just stop, and look at that factory. We need to take your mind off things. Let's invade a factory."


	5. Chapter 4

The building had top security; electrified fences, security cameras,and most importantly- only one gate. Clara knew that the Doctor would get them in, she just wasn't sure how.

"Doctor, how are we supposed to get in? As far as I can tell there's only one gate." She glanced around, hoping the security cameras didn't point too far from the fence.

"Clara, I'll be right back. Stay put." And he disappeared into the TARDIS.

Great, Clara thought, Who knows how long he'll be in there. She stared at the building. What in the world could be in there with so much security? What made that so necessary?

Then she noticed the things flying around overhead. Big blimps. Zeppelins. They had barely made any noise so they were almost unnoticeable to the ear. This wasn't right. Since when had anyone used zeppelins? What was going on?

Her thoughts were interrupted when suddenly a man came stumbling around the corner, struggling to carry a woman. The swim trunks and pin-striped suit jacket he was wearing looked ridiculous on his tall and narrow frame. He had a bit of stubble and his hair was scruffy and wild, also a bit wet looking. The woman's face was concealed by her damp hair which clung to her face. All she wore was a light blue bikini that was accented by her yellow hair. The man glanced around, then saw Clara standing by the fence.

"Help me, please!" He gasped, almost falling over. Clara wasn't sure what to do. The Doctor had told her to wait, but if he were here they would probably help this desperate man.

Clara ran to him and helped him steady himself. Without a word she grabbed the woman from the other side and let him guide her to their destination.

Clara's senses were immediately heightened when she saw where they were headed. The factory, if it even was a factory. As they reached the gate she saw a guard on duty. But the man pulled a small card from his pocket and flashed it at the guard.

"N' who's she?" The guard gestured at Clara.

"She's with me, now please! This is Director Tyler's daughter!" The mans eyes flashed with fear and anguish. And they looked so familiar with them. So old. But Clara barely had time to think before they were on the move again.

The gates opened and they were inside, running awkwardly down the drive to the factory. The factory was plain concrete, stained from water and weather. The few windows had bars across them and were covered from the inside. The building looked about three stories high and had a giant sign advertising the formula on the top. The only part of the building that looked decent was the entrance. The doors were glass and their frame was steel. Hedges lined the walk to the entryway.

Clara and the man eventually stumbled their way to the door, where he quickly flashed his card at a machine and the doors popped open. As soon as they were inside a stretcher was there with dozens of personnel in train. Many of them wore lab coats and scrubs, while others were dressed in business attire. The man she had come in with stood at the side of the woman, talking to an older blond man worriedly. The older man looked to be a higher up in this place, maybe head even.

The group of people were rushing down the hall before Clara could process all of it. She followed, engulfed by the crowd. They went down several corridors, all looking the same, white walls, white floors, white lights. Suddenly they went through a double door into what looked like a med bay. It wasn't very large, but it was very staffed. People ran about, looking like busy little bees, all reporting to their one queen. She was petite and lovely, her skin a smooth brown. As the chief doctor she looked calm and confident, but Clara could tell when someone was worried, and this woman certainly was.

Clara kept to the wall, trying to avoid notice while she snuck away.

"Where d'you think you're going?" A young lady in a skirt-suit now stood in Clara's way.

"Oh, just um, nowhere. I just needed to use the toilet." Clara looked around for an escape route.

"There's one over there, but that can wait," The lady gestured to a room in the corner, "Director Tyler has requested you." She started walking away, and Clara followed. The more she knew the better.

The blond man she had seen earlier was Director Tyler. He was standing on the other side of the door, waiting.

"Hello, I'm Pete Tyler. And you are?

"Clara Oswald," She blurted out before thinking.

"Ms. Oswald, I'm going to have you follow Mrs. Wood. She's going to have you sit in a sort of waiting room until this is over," A glint of hopelessness appeared on his face for a second, but then was gone, "If you'd please, Mrs. Wood."

The lady who had approached Clara before escorted her out of the room. They traveled down several more empty hallways without a word. The only sound was the clicking of Mrs. Wood's heels on the tile floor.

"Here you are."

They entered a compact room, only big enough for a couch and two chairs. There was a side table laden with magazines, and a flat screen television mounted on the wall. All thoughts of this being a different planet vanished from Clara's mind.

"Have a seat. And make yourself comfy, this could be a while." Clara dropped down onto the white leather couch. Mrs. Wood sat gingerly in one of the matching arm chairs. To Clara's surprise Mrs. Wood removed her shoes and pulled her feet up under her. At Clara's stare she replied simply, "As I said, this could be a while."


	6. Chapter 5

Clara fidgeted in her seat. Only five minutes and she was already bored. She picked up a magazine. On the front cover was Pete Tyler and some other woman, presumably his wife. _Inside; The day to day life of the Tyler family_. Boring. She set it down and picked up a different one. _More Potter? JK Rowling has said to have started filming for another story set in the wizarding world. _Clara flipped through, eyeing the pages, but not really taking anything in. After flipping through several more magazines Mrs. Wood seemed a bit annoyed.

"Do you want some tea?" Mrs. Wood finally broke the silence.

"What?" Clara looked up from the magazine she was going through. Something about gardening and good fertilizers.

"I can call for some tea. If you'd like, of course."

"Oh, yes, that'd be great, thanks."

Mrs. Wood pressed some buttons on her phone and then ordered some tea to be brought to them.

Two cups of tea and an exchanging of stories later both Mrs. Wood and Clara were in stitches laughing.

"And that's when my husband came in with his saber, shouting some nonsense, only dressed in his bath robe. I was so embarrassed. Obviously I didn't get the job, but you should have seen the look on Ms. Learner's face! Priceless."

"He sounds great," Clara laughed.

"Oh, he's a piece of work, that's for sure. And you don't have to call me Mrs. Wood, honestly all I can think of is my mother in law when anyone calls me that, just call me Holly."

"Okay, Holly. Um, so I was just wondering, what exactly is going on here?" Clara finally stated what had been on her mind this whole time.

"Oh. I - we - aren't exactly… um… at liberty to say. Sorry," Holly looked away, guiltily.

_Sorry I asked,_ "Oh. Sorry…" Clara glanced to the side. Her eyes caught on a magazine hanging out from under the others. A pretty young woman was on the front, her yellow hair tied up in a fancy knot. Clara pulled it out, eyes wide. _Who__'__s the lucky man?; Rose Tyler attends Vitex Gala with handsome stranger._ Take away all the makeup, let her hair down, and replace the gorgeous golden silk dress with some jeans and a tee-shirt, and you've got Rose. The Rose from the pictures.

"Who is this?" Clara pressed.

"What? That's Rose, Director Tyler's daughter," Holly stared at Clara, confused.

Suddenly it clicked. _Rose was the one Clara had helped carry in. No wonder they would come here, if her dad is the one running the place. _

"She was the one I carried in, with that man," Clara mused.

"Dr. Smith."

"What happened to her?" When Holly failed to reply Clara repeated the question, only sterner, "What happened to her?"

Holly sighed.

"I suppose I might as well tell you what I know. My cousin works in the med bay. He says they've run all sorts of x-rays and scans and such. Nothing is physically wrong with her. They have nothing to go on. Neither Dr. Jones or Dr. Smith have any idea what's going on, and that's what really worries me."

The door was opened before she could continue.A young man popped his head in.

"Uh, they want to see Miss Oswald down at M.R. If you'd follow me, please, Miss Oswald," The man ushered Clara out of the room, Holly following suit.

"M.R? What's that?" Clara inquired, "Med room?" Holly shushed her.

"It's best that you don't make a racket."

"Why not? Where are we going?"

Holly once again shushed her.

"Please, you're only going to make things harder for yourself."

"What? Harder for myself?" When no one replied Clara obliged, though rather testily.

Several more twists and turns down other whitewashed hallways brought them to a room. It was pocket-sized, really, all it had in it was a card table and a couple of chairs, and a small cabinet on the wall. There was another door opposite the one they had entered, but there were no clues as to where it led.

"If you would take a seat, please, Miss Oswald," The man gestured to the chair in front of her.

"Not until you tell me what's going on!" Now that the door was closed Clara felt free to shout at will.

"Just sit down, please, we're just having a drink," The man went over to the cabinet and pulled out a liquor bottle. He poured three glasses, throwing a glance over at Holly. It was barely noticeable, but Clara caught it. She was on alert.

He pushed a glass across the table to her.

"I don't drink."

"Oh, well we've got some juice here too."

"I'm not thirsty."

His gaze darkened and she could feel the room tense up. Holly spoke up.

"Please, Clara, just drink it," She pleaded.

Something shady was up. Just what, Clara didn't know. And every second Clara sat there the man's rage thickened the air. He was like a bomb ready to explode any second now. She was wary. But whatever was going on she didn't want to be a part of it.

"No." She was the shining example in every peer pressure lesson from school. What happened next though wasn't quite like the lessons said.

The man lunged across the table, fists flying. Holly stood in the corner, her hand over her mouth. Trying to move away from the vessel of rage that was in her face, Clara's chair tipped. Head spinning she tried to focus on where the attack was coming from. Her vision swam in and out, as a body landed on top of her. She blocked her face, holding his arms at bay, and as an unconscious last resort she shouted.

"Stop! I have a friend who can help!"

The man seemed to pay no attention, but Holly did.

"Chris! Stop! Let her speak!" When he paid no attention to even his co-worker, Holly pursed her lips and lashed out.

One smooth strike to the head and he was out. Holly stood there, calm, letting Clara catch her breath.

"You alright?"

Clara nodded, slowly.

Holly helped her up.

"Are you sure?"

"Yes, I think so."

They exited the room. Holly, having snatched Chris' keys on the way out, locked the door.

"I don't mean to seem uncaring or anything, but you said you have a friend who could help Ms. Tyler."

"He's the best Doctor I know of."


End file.
